


tunnel of love

by orphan_account



Category: NINE PERCENT (Band), 乐华七子NEXT | NEX7, 偶像练习生 | Idol Producer (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Crushes, Fluff, M/M, mentions of some other idol producer contestants, mobile legends used here, popular!chengcheng, random drabble
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-02 14:54:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19201156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: chengcheng finds something at the end of the tunnel. the tunnel of love.





	tunnel of love

**Author's Note:**

> hey! it's been a good 6½ months since i "disappeared" from ao3 and i don't think anyone remembers anymore. i'm back here to upload this short drabble that is randomly & badly written ksksksk :p school has been pretty hectic and i've spent that 6½ months focusing on my studies with hopes of not failing! well it's the holidays now (one month) which means i'll have some time to upload some works. the works that aren't finished will be discontinued (unless i suddenly have the inspiration to continue writing them) :/ this work is really short, but i hope u enjoy it!

if you said that fan chengcheng has a crush on justin huang, ding zeren would display an 'X' sign using his arms, telling you that you're wrong. 

well, it's only partially wrong. saying that chengcheng has a crush on justin is just the basic answer, you have to go in depth and talk about chengcheng's feelings for justin. how the popular guy in school managed to fall for this certain pretty boy in his class, despite all the fangirls delivering him bentos and love letters daily; how the popular guy in school's heart beats so rapidly when the pretty boy merely smiles at him but not when there are many girls with the face of an angel smiling 24/7 at him; how the popular guy in school would sacrifice everything he has just to make sure that the pretty boy is unharmed and protected at all costs, eating the best food and living the best life.

now, zeren would say they sound more like a couple at this point of time. with chengcheng being so in love with justin and literally having heart eyes whenever he stares like a lovestruck idiot at the other, one would think that they are actually together. sadly, chengcheng is too much a coward and refuses to reveal his feelings no matter how much zeren persuades and bribe (yes, bribe!) him. if the school heartthrob does not wish to do anything, what can his best friend do?

zeren only watches by the side as chengcheng woos justin, and laughs at how desperate his best friend is for the pretty boy's attention. justin is the type of person who cares a lot for his friends, and would feel bad every time they told him to go for lunch with chengcheng. bros before hoes, that is really what justin is made up of. but the pretty boy does not always turn chengcheng's lunch offer down and eats with him from time to time. zeren think justin is just being polite towards chengcheng (who knows, the school heatthrob's fanclub could attack the pretty boy anytime), but he could have other intentions too.

* * *

 

today, they are once again sitting in their classroom, playing a mobile game. chengcheng moved from three tables away to beside justin, claiming that it would help boost their teamwork, but zeren knew his friend just wanted to get close to his crush. zeren had chosen to be the fighter of the team, but under the school heartthrob's piercing glare, he clicked on a support hero's icon instead and watched as chengcheng took his original hero. 

alucard is not a hero that chengcheng mainly plays, but upon knowing that justin always picks miya, a marksman, he has since then trained himself to be familiar with alucard and play it every round. well, chengcheng has even took a step further and started cashing on the game itself, purchasing all the skins that are available for alucard and getting the monthly starlight membership. and of course, he has gifted justin many miya skins and buys the monthly membership for him, even though the pretty boy insists that it is not needed, chengcheng is made out of money and justin is someone he does not mind spending it on for the entirety of his live. 

that is pretty much how they have that special valentines' day couple skin, and how zeren rarely plays alucard anymore but opts for lolita instead. after all, lolita is a tank-plus-support hero and no one wants to play those two roles in their team. zeren had demanded chengcheng to gift him skins, since he went through the trouble of learning the skills and abilities of this hero, eventually familiarising himself with it and playing it. techincally, chengcheng has given a lot of skins to his friends or the people in their mobile legends squad, but justin still holds the title of "most gifts received from fan chengcheng."

"justin," chengcheng calls out the other's name as they finish destroying the enemy's base turret, making the pretty boy lift his head up from his phone. "do you want to go to canteen three and have lunch?" 

"i'm not that rich, chengcheng. canteen three is only for the rich students of the school." justin answers, exiting the app and putting his phone down.

well, it is pretty true that canteen three is for the rich students of the school. their high school, somehow, has several canteens located across the campus. the principal said it was so that all students and staff would find it more convenient and have sufficient time to eat their food. canteen one and canteen two are located at blocks A and B, while canteen three was located at block C, the block where their classroom was. this certain canteen three required a card to enter, and the card could be purchased at fifty dollars from the school.

it does sound pretty ridiculous, but the food at canteen three is really of good quality, and most students get their wealthy friends to bring them food from the stalls there or just get the card from them. of course, the school opens canteen three to the entire student body (yes, staff members have access to canteen three even without a card) on special occasions or when the principal feels like it. the principal is pretty generous too, and thinks for the student body. there is another canteen built at block C, which is similar to canteens one and two, but called canteen C. no one knows why, but they just know that they need it.

chengcheng simply reaches for his wallet that is left on the desk beside him and takes his extra canteen three card out, placing it on justin's table. he sounds like that rich douche in a korean drama who thinks having money can get him anything, but chengcheng is not like those guys. he is a genuinely nice friend and would do anything to make justin happy. that gesture just meant that he wants to spend some quality time with justin, having some quality food and quality conversations.

"well, i guess it's a yes then. i can turn down your gifts, but i don't think i can turn down good food. under one condition though!"

"what is it?"

"let me repay you properly this time. i'll let you decide how you want me to repay you."

"sounds good enough. let's go, i'm starving."

justin was about to open his mouth and invite zeren along with linong and quanzhe who have been playing mobile legends with them, but chengcheng drags him out of the classroom at top speed. as if chengcheng does not want anyone else to eat with them (well, that is actually the case). justin just lets words disappear from his mouth and follow the school heartthrob, letting the taller boy drag him by the arm with the utmost gentleness to canteen three.

the journey there is a little quiet, they have several short conversations, mixed with the chatters of the other students in the background. chengcheng pays no attention to the girls who are whispering way too loudly about him and justin, instead walks faster and pulls the shorter boy closer to him. yeah, chengcheng is real protective when it comes to justin and he hates it when he hears his "fangirls" complaining about how he has been giving all his attention to this blond guy when "they are so much better." 

the duo reach canteen three faster than expected and chengcheng taps his card, in which justin copies his action. canteen three looks different from the other three canteens, with a high ceiling and lights that almost seem like chandelier lights. the school is pretty rich after all, maybe they were trying to copy a set from ouran high school host club. 

"go order what you want to eat, i'll go find us a table. just tap the card, the pin is 1902." chengcheng says, the corners of his lips slightly raised. he walks away without waiting for a reply from justin, set to find a corner where they will not be disturbed. after all, some fangirls of his had bought canteen three cards just to sit near him and eat. such a rare chance with justin was not to be disrupted.

the blond only nods at chengcheng's walking figure, slightly dazed at why the pin is his birthdate. but without any hesitation, he looks around canteen three before settling on getting the japanese curry rice. it was the food his cousin (who is an alumnus of the school) had told him about before he entered the school, telling justin that he must try it once before leaving the school. after all, he fancies japanese curry rice as much as that previous epic skin that chengcheng had gifted him, so why not have it for lunch?

the food takes a little long to prepare, but justin does not mind, since good food is not cheap and takes time to make after all. the plate of japanese curry rice comes out all hot and steamy, and the excitement in justin boils up. it looks like it is made up of pure goodness, instead of the actual ingredients. justin walks to the table that chengcheng had found, and the latter is already there waiting for justin and his food, along with a bowl of noodles and some desserts on the table.

"oh, you got the japanese curry rice? that's a good choice."

"yeah, my cousin who graduated told me that i have to try it once before graduating from here. this would be probably be the last time i'm eating here, so i thought of getting it." justin says, resting the steamy plate of food on the marble table and sliding the canteen three card back to chengcheng.

he had expected the school heartthrob to take the card back, but the latter instead slides it back, "this won't be the last time. i got this card for you, and i already topped up a month's worth of food inside. if you need more money, you can always tell me. my sister has some connections with the school that lets me get free top-ups."

"i can't do that, chengcheng! it's too much to take from you, and i don't think i can ever repay you. a canteen three card is really expensive, and adding the cost of the top-ups, that's even pricier! plus all the gifts you've given to me in the game and outside of the game, i really can't accept it." 

chengcheng only laughs slightly and opens his wallet, showing the contents of it to justin, "don't worry. i have spare canteen three cards lying around in my wallet, and my sister uses her ability to top up those cards for free every month, so our family doesn't spend a single cent and it's not a lot. don't worry, justin, you'll never have to repay me. i don't want you to."

instead of another protest from the blond, justin is staring at the polaroid photo sitting in chengcheng's wallet, and chengcheng notices that. he pulls it out of the wallet slot and justin blinks, eyes diverting back to chengcheng's face instead.

"i see this has caught your attention." the taller says, placing the polaroid photo between them, and justin's eyes immediately focus on it again. "when i was younger, back in middle school, my school had its' annual sports competition. the younger me then was really scared of loud noises, and the cheers and horn didn't make it any better. i ran fast, but the horn was consistently a problem at every sports event. so when the teacher had pressed down on the horn, my two feet couldn't move at all. i stood rooted to the ground while the other middle schoolers ran past me, dashing towards the finishing line. my team ran over, trying to comfort me and get me running at the same time. most of their actions were pretty useless but this certain boy held my hand and ran to the finishing line. he ran so fast, so fast that he literally ran past the first place and we both won. of course, it was against the rule, but the school let us win. my mom had insisted on having me to take a photo with the boy. we became really good friends, but after middle school, we stopped contacting and i never talked or met him ever again. but i really want to find him again."

there was silence between them for moments, with justin just staring at the photo, thoughts unknown to chengcheng running through his mind. the other boy took the time to recall that memory, his eyes sometime diverting to justin's concentrated face. the blond was really deep in thought and chengcheng let him think about that polaroid photo for a while, before justin started taking his wallet out. 

chengcheng did not know what justin was going to do, but he knew the next moment when justin pulled out a polaroid photo from his wallet. the same exact one, the same polaroid photo of two boys with a navy-and-white paisley bandana tied around their heads, the taller boy's hand around the shorter boy's shoulder, both having peace signs up. they were dressed in their middle school sports attire, two stripes of navy paint on both their cheeks, standing in the middle of the track, the trophy raised by some faceless girl behind them.

silence engulfed them once again as they stared intensely at the polaroid photos placed between them, their eyes moving back and forth between those two photos until they met each other, and finally realised that all this while, they had known each other since middle school, 

_and that they have been finding for each other_

when they were just together all this time.

justin broke the silence first, giggling quietly, "i've been looking for you this entire time too, chengcheng."

there is a mixture of stuttering and laughter pouring out of chengcheng's mouth, but he finally collects his words and starts a conversation with justin about the polaroid photo. and yeah, they really knew each other since middle school and have been searching everywhere for each other since then. justin explained how he was rushing to visit his grandmother who was in the hospital on the last day of school, and could not get chengcheng's contact. they both had tried to ask their mothers for information about each other, but to no avail. so they kept themselves in the dark for so many years, until today. 

"i know how you can repay me now, justin."

"how?"

"i've been looking for you for such a long time, and you mean so much to me. i'm sure you know that i like you a lot too, be my boyfriend."

"is this how you people confess?" justin says, face and ears turning read, not able to look at the other in the eyes.

"i take it as a yes."

justin does not say anything, but deep down inside, he had liked chengcheng since the start of the second year in high school, and got surprised that a guy like chengcheng would start talking to him, furthermore be so kind to him and buy him stuff. even better, chengcheng was the guy that he had been finding for so long and the guy who made his middle school life so much better since that matter. 

the school heartthrob only laughs as justin lets out a sound of approval and eats his curry rice that is no longer steaming. chengcheng enjoys the view of his blushing boyfriend eating his food with embarrassment, until the other kicks his leg under the table and he starts eating. they start a conversation after a while, and chengcheng thinks this is the best lunch he ever had.

he really made a discovery at the end of the tunnel. not light, but the past of justin and him.

**Author's Note:**

> [twt](https://twitter.com/shizhvn)


End file.
